By: angiehongmn
Keeping water clean, Wildlife, , , ,

Back from the brink of extinction

Success stories to inspire Earth Day action in 2024

On April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans — 10% of the U.S. population at the time — participated in teach-ins and rallies, calling for sweeping changes to end the environmental destruction they saw happening across the nation. It was a time when rivers literally caught on fire, urban air was cloyed with smog, and signature species such as bison, bald eagles, and wolves had nearly disappeared from the earth. Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, was inspired to organize that very first “Earth Day” after watching a massive oil spill send 4.2 million gallons of crude oil into the ocean and onto the beaches of Santa Barbara, California in 1969.

Image from the New York Times www.nytimes.com/2020/04/21/climate/NYT-first-earth-day.html

In the following years, the Federal Government sprang to action, establishing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (1970), and passing the Clean Air Act (1970), Clean Water Act (1972), Endangered Species Act (1973), and Wilderness Act (1974), in addition to banning the use of DDT, a pesticide found to be harming eagles, osprey and other birds-of-prey.

In short, Earth Day made a very big difference.

(Photos from left to right): Swans on Lake McKusick in Stillwater, MN. A bald eagle flies over the Mississippi River near St. Paul. A river otter on ice – photo by NPS/Neal Herbert.

In Minnesota, the Nongame Wildlife Program launched a few years later in 1977 and can now claim credit for helping to bring osprey, peregrine falcons, trumpeter swans, bluebirds, otters, and bald eagles back from the brink of extinction. Trumpeter swans had been gone from Minnesota since 1880, with less than 100 living anywhere in the lower 48 states; today, more than 51,000 trumpeter swans float gracefully across the rivers and lakes of our state. Likewise, river otters had been extirpated (locally extinct) from the entire Minnesota River watershed since 1880, but were re-introduced in 1980 and now number more than 18,000.

After DDT was banned from most uses in the United States in 1972, bald eagle populations slowly began to rebound but were still hampered by lead poisoning, caused by eating geese and ducks with lead shotgun pellets in their bodies. Researchers from the Nongame Wildlife Program, Raptor Center, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and University of Minnesota were able to successfully document the impacts of lead in 1978 and drive a statewide ban on the use of lead shot for waterfowl hunting. Today, Minnesota’s bald eagle populations have grown from only 181 active nests in 1980, to more than 1,600 nesting pairs today.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has de-listed 80 lakes and streams in the past two years due to improved water quality. (Top/left) Kohlman Lake in Maplewood, Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District, de-listed for nutrients in 2024; (Top/middle) East Boot Lake in May Township, Carnelian-Marine-St. Croix Watershed District, de-listed for nutrients in 2022; (Top/left) Forest Lake in Forest Lake, Comfort Lake – Forest Lake Watershed District, de-listed for mercury in 2020; (Bottom) Lily Lake in Stillwater, Middle St. Croix Watershed Management Organization, de-listed for nutrients in 2022.

Even after more than fifty years, Earth Day’s impacts can still be seen. In 2022, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency was able to remove 53 lakes and streams from the state’s impaired waters list, thanks to improved water quality. This year, an additional 27 water bodies will be “de-listed”. These improvements in water quality are a direct result of the Federal Clean Water Act, which spurred decades of locally led monitoring, research, and action.

In twelve Minnesota lakes, the fish are safe to eat again, thanks in part to a statewide shift away from coal-burning power toward wind and solar energy. There has been a 70% reduction in mercury emissions statewide since 2007, which translates into less mercury in our lakes and rivers, and less mercury ending up in the bodies of fish and wildlife. This Earth Day, you can help to continue the work of previous generations by advocating for environmental changes you hope to see at a local, state and federal level, and volunteering to support projects in your community.

Volunteers in Stillwater help to care for raingardens that protect Lily and McKusick Lakes, Brown’s Creek, and the St. Croix River. Join this year’s Raingarden Clean-Up event on May 4, 9-11am at Washington Square Park.

Looking for an easy way to get started? Here are some upcoming events:

  • Valley Eco Fair – Sat. April 27, 11am-3pm at Pioneer Park in Stillwater. Participate in family-friendly activities and visit with more than 25 local organizations working to protect the environment in the St. Croix Valley. (Note that Sustainable Stillwater is tracking the weather and will post an update Friday morning if the event needs to be rescheduled.)
  • Raingarden Clean-up event – Sat., May 4, 9-11am at Washington Square Park in Stillwater. Help to clean-up raingardens around Stillwater to protect the St. Croix River and our local lakes. More info at mnwcd.org/events/2024/raingardencleanup.
  • Pollinator Planting Party – Sat., May 4, 11am-1pm at Lake Elmo Park Reserve. Help plant more than 1000 native plants. Visit http://www.pollinatorfriendly.org to register.
  • Long Lake Bird Habitat Planting Party – Sat., May 18, 10am-noon at Croixwood Open Square in Stillwater (498 Northland Ave). Help plant 300 tree seedlings. More info at sustainablestillwatermn.org/upcoming-events.